Explore the most popular dog friendly trails near Los Angeles with hand-curated trail maps and driving directions as well as detailed reviews and photos from hikers, campers and nature lovers like you.

Don’t bother. Once you arrive, you have to make a small hike uphill to get to the trailhead. Everything is well marked, except there is no mention of this trail. Also, once you get half mile in, there are no dog signs posted. Such a waste of my day.

Short, but sweet. Came early and parked in the first lot to the right. Free parking. Ton of people walking/hiking with their dogs. The trail is off to the right, but if you miss it and keep going straight there is a map and it’ll direct you back. There is one entrance into the cave, but three exit points! Pretty cool.

This an 8.26 mike hike, not a 7 mike hike. It also gets confusing when you get to the zoo area because you have to cross the parking lot and the grassy lawn to get the the crosswalk in order to get to the other part of the hike, which is where most of the horses go. We loved the first part but once you follow the side of the road then behind the Autry, it get boring.

I really enjoyed this trail — once I found it. I missed the first left turn (because I wasn’t looking at the trail map), and I ended up going on a short hike behind some of houses. That isn’t this trail. So I’d advise, if it’s your first time there, use the map. The trail has a few places where it Ys, and I appreciated this app in those moments. That said, it’s a beautiful area with incredible views, and my dog and I had a grand time. We will be back.

Also: Make sure to keep your dog on a leash. They seem pretty serious about tickets. One visitor told me a ranger recently hid in the bushes and gave his friend a ticket. Sneaky.

First off, the address on this app is wrong and took you to a train stop 8 min away. Just type in “old zoo” info your phone.

This place is lowkey ratchet. I walked past it and didn't even realize, got lost trying to go up the upper zoo trail and found my way back. Even regulars say that they still get messed up trying to remember where it is, even though it's literally right next to the parking lot.

I thought it would have super cool graffiti, as I am a big fan of street art, but this was just poor quality vandalism. I thought it was a slap in the face to see that people had tagged the trees, rocks, and the signs that could point you in the right direction/tell you about the history of the zoo.

The old zoo itself was super dilapidated in a not cool way (can you say old ANIMAL PRISON). It also smelled terrible and I even saw a bottle of piss. Then there were these hoodlums blasting metal in the picnic area and hidden in pockets on the hills smoking weed and drinking beers, which they probably littered. I would probably come here if I was a goth kid in middle school trying to find a place outside my parents house to drink keystone ice and smoke cigs. Also, there's coyotes roaming around so that was also sketch.

TLDR: you will leave this place wanting to make sure you put on hand sanitizer and wanting to dart out promptly before dusk. And the hike itself was underwhelming.

The single track trail to the actual cave is rather overgrown and strewn with litter. As you get closer to the cave there's a lot of graffiti and other simply creepy things (like a chain hanging from a tree shaped into a noose!?). There's also a ton of trash. Such a shame as these caves, if left alone and protected, would certainly be an amazing little treat. The single track itself is also challenging in parts and as others have suggested, wear long pants (or find another trail all together).

We parked outside the gate and walked to the marked trail head. It was just a dirt road up to the caves, but they were fun to loop through for the kids a few times and we also climbed up a small hill to get some good pictures with the Hollywood sign, which also got them excited.

Good amount of shade/sun ratio. Never made to the actual caves due to the poorly marked entrance, over growth, and disgusting boxers with used tissue and poop ....but it was still a great hike on the main trail...especially while carrying a 1 yr old on your back.

Arrived via Reseda Blvd. I believe it's a little more difficult a route than starting at Vanalden. I never made it to the actual cave because as I was about to approach it about 6 police officers came towards me on the path with a prisoner who ran up to hide in it. They informed me that I should turn around as there were two more guys at the cave.

I definitely will not return to such a shady place. A great deal of the trail was littered with garbage and just before the cave there were used tissue and boxer shorts. GROSS!

Great trail, the last loop you have to look for off the main trail. The last part was much more fun and there was a part I had to use my hands to get up past the rocks at the cave. Wear long pants! The trail near the cave is overgrown.